Children are procuring drugs and alcohol and having sex with adults after using dating apps, which have escaped the federal government’s teen social media ban that begins next month.
An Australian Institute of Criminology study found children were facing harm both online and offline after accessing adult platforms, including dating apps, matchmaking services, and online fetish communities.
A Danish study found double the risk of myopia in 16 to 17-year-olds who used electronic devices for more than six hours a day.Credit: Getty
The research comes just weeks before the government’s teen social media ban takes effect, with under-16s to be banned from social media platforms including Facebook and TikTok from December 10. No dating apps are covered by the ban, as they already bar people under 18 from using their services.
However, the institute had previously found that one in 10 people on dating apps had used the platforms while underage. The new study interviewed 46 young adults who had used dating apps and services as children, and the participants – now aged 18-21 – told interviewers how they used apps for drugs, alcohol and sex.
“I went out with that person with the promise of sexual activity in exchange for them purchasing alcohol for me,” one participant said.
Another said: “I think part of what I wanted from [the platforms] was validation and a bit of self-worth at times. It’s kind of hard to say if I actually got that or if it was just a quick gratification but ultimately doing more harm.”
The study found that half of the children had met a match offline, and in many of these instances, the adult knew the age of the child.
“He was in his early 40s, and we ended up meeting up off the app, and I was 14 years old, and he knew that,” a participant told interviewers.
Another said: “There might have been a couple [of meet-ups] that were cancelled because they found out that I wasn’t 18, but it wouldn’t have been too many.”
Researcher Dr Tahlia Hart said the study raised the question of whether the government should legislate stricter accessibility requirements.
“I think there should be a collaborative approach to ensuring that young people aren’t getting on these platforms – from the government, from the platforms, from the community as well,” the Flinders University criminology lecturer said, adding the benefits of legislative intervention would depend on the policy.
Hart said dating services were increasing their safety measures and publicly declaring they did not want children on their apps, but “it’s whether or not we need a government-initiated law to make them do that”.
“Other countries have taken a stronger stance on 18-plus platforms and put a few more regulations in place to mitigate young people getting on there. Australia might want to consider doing that. Given we are putting regulatory measures in place for 16-year-olds, we might want to think about how we can also consider that for an 18-plus app market as well.”
The institute’s previous finding that 10 per cent of people on dating apps had used them while underage showed it was simple for teens to bypass age verification measures, Hart said.
“A lot of the time it’s just putting in a fake birthday or ticking a box, which doesn’t mean that platforms aren’t doing more than that, but that’s the entry point,” she said.
Hart said 27 of the 46 participants identified as LGBTQ at the time of the interview, which could be explained by higher rates of app usage among that cohort.
“[It’s] this idea of finding an inclusive space and using online environments to do that because LGBTQ youth don’t always have that space in the offline environments,” she said, noting that the participants did not all identify in the same way now as they did when using dating apps underage.
The study noted many participants were taking the same risks outside of apps, but the institute’s deputy director, Rick Brown, said adult-based platforms were a growing way for youth to explore risky behaviour.
“Behaviours such as illegal conversations involving sexting, drug use and crime typically move outside these platforms, which needs to be considered in any response or preventive action,” Brown said.
Hart said risk-taking among teens was not new, but dating apps were a new way for them to do it.
Of the 46 survey participants, 10 people reported drinking alcohol, five said they used drugs, and one said they had broken into a private premises after meeting up with a match.
A voluntary industry code of conduct, developed last year to guide safety standards for dating apps, will be reviewed by the eSafety Commission next year, an eSafety spokesperson said.
“The [Online Dating Industry Code] sets clear expectations for how dating services should handle safety risks, including the detection and removal of predatory accounts, stronger user-reporting systems, and better co-operation with law enforcement,” they said.
“eSafety will assess its effectiveness in 2026 and provide advice to government on whether additional measures are required.”
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